Zachariah Baxter stood by the open window, not really feeling the coolness of the early autumn breeze as it drifted lazily up from the quad.
His thoughts were troubled, and fully occupied with the dilemma in which he now found himself to notice the small inconvenience of a chill breeze.
He knew that he should file the necessary report with the Dean's office, even in the full knowledge of the damaging consequences that would inevitably result.
However, it was the knowledge of those consequences that was causing his dilemma and the very real prospect of ruining a promising young woman's entire future life so severely was hard for him to take.
He knew all too well that for her, dismissal from college, and for such a reason, would close every door on her future prospects.
If he chose to submit his report and effectively disown her, she would be in for a tough time, and a large part of his dilemma was simply that he genuinely felt for the young woman in question.
Zachariah was by nature a quiet, thoughtful man, softly spoken, yet carrying with him an air of authority that made him the envy of most of his colleagues, he was well liked and respected by both students and fellow lecturers.
He did not make rash or hurried decisions; instead, he always considered every angle, weighing the consequences of any chosen course of action carefully, however once he had made his decision, he was implacable and determined.
Zachariah had always believed that if a person was old enough to ask a question, then that person was old enough for a truthful answer. He also believed strongly that if a person chose to do something they clearly knew was wrong, then they had also chosen and accepted the inevitable consequences.
Rhianwen Thomas had just left his office, red faced, in floods of tears after pleading, with genuine fear in her eyes. He was surprised when she had fallen to her knees, begging him to deal with this himself, to punish her, even beat her as he saw fit rather than alert the Dean's Office.
He had seen many a student in the past try to mitigate, try to charm, bribe and sometimes bully, using their family connections, themselves out of their self-imposed predicaments, but never had he seen one so genuinely wretched. He did have a great deal of sympathy for Rhianwen, she was very talented and very bright, but sadly from the wrong side of the class divide, a poor quarryman's daughter's from the Welsh Valleys and she did not fit in.
The student body drawn traditionally from the wealthy, the middle class prep schools combined with the Dean's grand experiment in placing students from state schools into the mix proved difficult for the individuals concerned. Normally shunned and ignored for the most part by the élite cliques, but when not being ignored, simply ridiculed.
Rhianwen was one such student, and although having the right qualifications; she had to live on the inadequate bursary the college provided, a bursary that did not provide her with accommodation. He knew she worked long hours at a less than reputable hotel to make ends meet and until recently had managed to keep within the top five percentile; this had slipped quite dramatically in recent months.
Rather sadly, this morning he had caught her red-handed helping herself to the small amount of money that was kept in the petty cash tin. After demanding an explanation from her, he now knew the reason why, and as a direct consequence why her grades were also slipping so drastically.
He had insisted that she explain herself, and at the time of asking, he was barely able to contain himself. That had rapidly changed when she broke down, telling him in her soft lilting welsh accent, how she was behind with her rent and the property owner was demanding a certain kind of favour or she would be thrown out onto the street.
He was aghast at how little money she had, how poor the wage from her job really was, how miserable the rest of the students were making her life, they had effectively ostracized her making it difficult for her to participate in the necessary study groups.
After hearing all of the details, he could grudgingly accept the imperativeness of her situation, and the reason why she did what she did, but that did not excuse her, she only had to come to him, tell him of her problems and he would have found some way of helping her.
She was due to return to his office at 5pm for his decision, so he settled back into his chair and thought.
~~0~~
Rhianwen Thomas had felt it, her breathing quickening, her body responding with an entirely new kind of excitement the first time she met her charismatic professor. His very presence somehow burned deep into her conscience, leaving her infatuated.
He was nothing but kindness and professional, with her and everyone else taking the degree, but there was an indefinable something that attracted her deeply. He possessed a certain kind of raw essence, and brilliance, she did not understand it, did not understand the feelings he evoked in her, or the way her body reacted whenever his beautiful grey eyes alighted on her.
She was in awe of him, fascinated, but afraid to engage with him properly, and yet, throughout the academic year, his insightful, complicated mind continued to enthral her.
Rhianwen was not late, at precisely 5pm she timidly knocked on his office door, she was terrified, she knew that what she had done was wrong, and she was painfully aware that her future now lay in the hands of her quietly spoken professor.
She was deeply troubled and fearful of the situation she had gotten herself into and she was so ashamed that, of all people, it had to be Zachariah Baxter that she had let down so badly.
"Enter." She heard him say, he sounded calm, which she hoped was a good sign, so swallowing her nerves, she pushed open the door and walked into his office. Sitting behind his desk stroking his pen across some papers, he looked troubled as she stood in front of him, her eyes downcast, and her whole body trembling.
"Please sit down Ms Thomas." He said quietly.
Rhianwen felt the deep heat of her flush, her cheeks burning, she could no longer control her limbs trembling, or the tight knot in her stomach that was giving her such terrible cramps, tears were threatening to overwhelm her.
"Ms Thomas" he started, his voice quiet, sounding almost regretful, "I have reached a decision regarding your future in this college, how you choose for me to proceed is entirely up to you. Please read the paper in front of you, read it carefully and if you agree unreservedly, and without hesitation with my conclusions then sign your name at the bottom." As he spoke, his eyes bore directly into her.
Rhianwen's hands were shaking hard as she picked up the neat hand written sheet of paper, and she had to push the back of her hand into her eyes to clear the tears that threaten to overwhelm her before she could read.
